Trainspotting (1996) - +
I didn't connect to it as much as I have with Danny Boyle's other work, and I definitely don't think it is his best, but it was very interesting and unique and very notable. Ewan McGregor was awesome as Renton; I haven't seen anything from him quite as great or distinctive. The baby was the most shocking and memorable thing about
Trainspotting. I think I'll like it more the second time I see it.
Vanilla Sky (2001) -
This movie doesn't really have an actual rating for me and I'll explain why. My first viewing of it was probably the best film-viewing experience I have ever had. I was completely blown away and when it was over, I laid in my bed looking at the sky, and the clouds were... oddly coincidental. I just stared up at them thinking about the film. And for days after that, I was still thinking about it. It has an atmosphere different from any film or any
thing I have ever known. But when I saw it again, a few weeks later, I was very underwhelmed. The same distinctive atmosphere wasn't as apparent, and it didn't feel as personal or as incredible. I put it off for a long time, hoping that if I came back to it having not thought about it or thinking somewhat lowly of it for a while, I could regain that love I originally had. It worked with
The Shawshank Redemption, after all. I finally watched it again last week, and although I enjoyed it more than my second viewing, I still wasn't as blown away as I was the first time I saw it. I could feel the atmosphere a bit better then I had before this last time, but still not as heavily as after my initial viewing. This is all sort of upsetting, but at the same time I will always treasure the first time I saw it and will always have immense respect for it. I know I have to see
Open Your Eyes, the original this was remade into, but I have a very hard time believing that, despite it possibly being more well-made than
Vanilla Sky, I will like it any near as much. The most notable and distinctive things that make
Vanilla Sky work for me are things I know aren't in the original. The cast, for example: Tom Cruise, Jason Lee (is hilarious when drunk), Kurt Russel, and even Noah Taylor in his minor role as Tech Support. Most importantly, though, it's the soundtrack. It helps the film so much, I think, and without it the film probably wouldn't be so good. And the original doesn't have any of those, so I can't say I will like it as much even if it is more well-made. Anyway, I can still say I enjoy
Vanilla Sky a damn good amount, and that'll probably never change. The only thing I don't like about it is Cameron Diaz. She is a terrible actress.
Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) - -
Interesting film. It's the third Woody Allen movie I've seen, the others being
Annie Hall and
Manhattan (all being his most famous, am I right?). It's easy to tell this was made by Woody Allen, mostly due to the narration which is so Woody Alleny it would be hard to not figure it out. I thought everyone did a fine job acting-wise, especially Penelope Cruz (obviously). I was expecting to just see Anton Chigurh when Javier Bardem came on, but surprisingly I barely noticed it was the same guy. I think I'll buy this flick soon enough.
City of God (2002) -
WOW. This was incredible and easily one of the best films I have ever seen. I can't think of anything to say, though. Bené was my favorite character, definitely. I thought Li'l Z
é was a badass at first until he progressively became the villain of the film, and one of the best villains I have ever seen. A f*cking killing machine. And now, looking at the film as a whole, it's incredibly horrifying that what happened in it really happened like that.
O Lucky Man! (1973) -
Malcom McDowell is one of my favorite actors. But when this film started all I could see was Alex DeLarge. I couldn't see the apparently nice guy that Michael Travis was supposed to be. Thankfully I got past that quickly and could appreciate Malcom McDowell for his awesome acting ability and versatility. I love it when he exaggerates his eating/drinking motions. The length surprisingly didn't make the film boring, even though I thought it would. I don't think it's anything too exceptional, but it is a great watch for any McDowell fan.
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007) - +
I was planning on selling this movie to my local new/used DVD store, like I do with other movies, and with all of those I like to watch them again just to make sure I don't like them. I was surprised to find I actually do like this. Maybe it's because I watched the theatrical version rather than the uncut version, but I laughed more this time than I did with my first viewing, and in fact more than I do with a lot of movies. The humor isn't always funny, though - there are times when it's forced - but when it's not it's hilarious. And John C. Reilly is a great comedian with a rockin' voice. I think I will hang on to this DVD for a bit longer.
Changeling (2008) -
My first rewatch didn't disappoint. It's one of the movies where everything just seems heightened with the rewatch. The emotional scenes were more emotional, the great acting was better, the bad acting was worse, etc. There were times I felt like crying this time around, whereas the first time I saw it I didn't get emotional at all. The axe scene was nearly gut-wrenching; I wanted to turn my head but couldn't. The bad acting lies almost entirely with the children. Most of them were decent enough, and I even thought Devon Conti (the 'fake boy') was very good, but Eddie Alderson (Sanford Clark) was pretty bad. He exaggerated everything a bit too much. Angelina Jolie still delivered a great performance though, and John Malkovich was equally good or even better. He's so awesome.
The Score (2001) - +
The only reason I saw this was for my grandpappy. He's the coolest human being I have ever known, and his time is nearing it's end, so I've been trying to help make him as happy as I can until then (it's hard to make him unhappy, but still). And every time I've seen him recently, we've talked about this movie and I guess he liked it a lot. So I bought it a few days ago for him, and thought I would check it out before sending it off. It was pretty enjoyable. The main cast is awesome, with three of my favorites actors: Edward Norton, Robert De Niro, and Marlon Brando. Brando gave the best performance, but De Niro and Norton were also very good, as usual (between the two, Norton was better). I wouldn't consider it a favorite or anything, but it will always have a special place in my heart only because grampers likes it.